Four men have been taken into custody by the Brazilian Police after being discovered on top of the rudder of a ship that had just completed a 13-day transatlantic voyage. While claiming to be Nigerian, the men were unable to provide any supporting documentation for their nationality.
The vessel, registered in Liberia, remains unnamed. The ship’s crew spotted the stowaways and promptly reported their presence upon arrival at VITORIA in Espirito Santo on July 10th. This port marked the end of a non-stop 5000 nautical mile journey that had commenced in Lagos, Nigeria, on June 27th.
Following the crew’s report, Brazilian Police arrived at the scene and located the stowaways hidden in the space above the ship’s rudder. The Police noted that this particular section of the vessel is occasionally submerged. The men were found to be in poor health, potentially due to a lack of access to food or drinking water for several days. Reportedly, one of the men did not know how to swim.
Subsequently, the men were transferred ashore for medical treatment and observation. They currently remain in the custody of maritime authorities. According to Brazilian law, they will be repatriated to their port of origin at the expense of the shipping operator.
The opinions expressed herein are the author’s and not necessarily those of News2Sea.
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